The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) this
week adopted long-anticipated regulations establishing a permitting
program for the siting, construction and operation of liquefied
natural gas (LNG) facilities. (6 NYCRR Part 570.) These
regulations, which will become effective February 26, 2015, will
allow for the development of new LNG facilities in New York state
for the first time in nearly 40 years. The regulations were first
proposed by DEC on September 11, 2013. Following several public
information meetings and public comment periods, DEC revised the
regulations to include an upper limit of 70,000 gallons as the
total amount of LNG that may be stored at a permitted LNG
facility.
New York has not allowed new LNG facilities in the state since
1976, after an explosion on Staten Island killed 40 workers.
Although the statutory moratorium was lifted for all areas outside
New York City in 1999, the ban effectively remained until the DEC
passed regulations. The regulations have no effect on the
moratorium that still prohibits new LNG facilities within New York
City.
The regulations also address the transportation of LNG, prohibiting
the intrastate transportation of LNG unless the route has been
certified by the New York Department of Transportation (NY DOT).
The regulations, however, exempt LNG fuel tanks used to power
trucks and other vehicles from the permitting requirement.
According to DEC's Revised Summary of Express Terms, the NY DOT
has determined that since certified routes are not established for
other hazardous materials, it would be impracticable to establish
certified routes for intrastate transportation of LNG, and
accordingly, intrastate transportation of LNG will not be
authorized under the regulations. The regulations do not require
certification of interstate LNG transportation routes.
DEC's regulations require that LNG facilities comply with the
National Fire Protection Association siting standards, which
prescribe, among other things, setbacks, evacuation requirements
and tank capacities. Further, LNG facilities that transfer LNG to
and from trucks, rail cars, or marine vessels must comply with the
U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline Safety
Regulations, 49 CFR Part 193, Subchapter D, or the U.S. Coast
Guard's Navigation and Navigable Waters Regulations, 33 CFR
Part 127, as applicable.
The regulations provide for DEC site inspections and require that
the applicant offer training, at its own cost, to local emergency
response personnel. The regulations also require the closing of
out-of-service LNG storage tanks or facilities and prompt spill
reporting for spills of one gallon or more of LNG at an LNG
facility, or lesser amounts that result in a fire or an
explosion.
DEC estimates that the most common LNG facilities to be permitted
under the regulations in the first five years will be fueling
facilities that are designed to serve long-haul trucking and
commercial fleet operations.
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